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Sunday, June 30, 2019

{allcanada} July 1: Tavares signs as free agent with Maple Leafs

THIS DATE IN HISTORY: July 1

2018: John Tavares becomes the first No. 1 pick in the modern era of NHL free agency (beginning in 1995) to leave the team that drafted him and sign with another club when he signs a seven-year, $77 million contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Tavares, a Toronto-area native who spends his first nine seasons with the New York Islanders after being selected No. 1 in the 2009 NHL Draft and is their captain from 2013-18, spends the week before the start of free agency meeting with six teams, including the Maple Leafs and Islanders. In the end, the opportunity to play for the Maple Leafs, the team he grew up cheering for, proves to be too attractive to pass up.

He leaves the Islanders with 621 points (272 goals, 349 assists) in 669 NHL games during nine seasons; that's fifth in Islanders history but first among players who weren't part of their four consecutive Stanley Cup-winning teams from 1980-83. Tavares has NHL career highs in goals (47) and points (88) in his first season with the Maple Leafs, though Toronto again fails to get past the first round of the playoffs.

 

MORE MOMENTS

1941: Rod Gilbert, the Rangers' all-time leading scorer, is born in Montreal. In his 18 NHL seasons, all with New York, Gilbert sets team records for goals (406) and points (1,021) despite numerous back injuries, one of which causes him to have a spinal fusion. Gilbert is the right wing on the "GAG Line" of the early 1970s, along with left wing Vic Hadfield and center Jean Ratelle, a boyhood friend and teammate. All three eventually have their numbers retired by the Rangers.

Rod Gilbert #7 of the New York Rangers

 

1967: Construction begins on the Forum in Inglewood, California, which will serve as the future home of the Los Angeles Kings when it opens six months later. The Kings, in their first NHL season, play at the Long Beach Arena and the Los Angeles Sports Arena until their new home is ready.

 

1995: The deal to relocate the Quebec Nordiques to Denver becomes official; the team will become known as the Colorado Avalanche. The move comes 13 years after the Colorado Rockies leave Denver to play in New Jersey. After finishing first in the Eastern Conference in their final season in Quebec, the newly named Avalanche win the Stanley Cup in their first season in Denver.

 

2015: The Pittsburgh Penguins make the first of a series of moves that will culminate in back-to-back Stanley Cup championships in 2016 and 2017 by acquiring forward Phil Kessel in a trade with the Maple Leafs. Kessel, a five-time 30-goal scorer, is made available after dropping from 80 points (37 goals, 43 assists) in 2013-14 to 61 points (25 goals, 36 assists) and a minus-34 rating in 2014-15. He finds a home late in the 2015-16 season on a line with left wing Carl Hagelin and center Nick Bonino; the "HBK Line" helps the Penguins win the Cup for the fourth time in their history. Kessel also plays a key role in Pittsburgh's run to a second straight championship in 2017. Kessel leads the Penguins in goals (10) and points (22) in the 2016 postseason. He has more points (23) in 2017 but finishes third in scoring behind teammates Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby.

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Posted by Cidinha at 10:31 PM 0 comments

{allcanada} Leafs to sign Agostino to two-year deal

 
The Toronto Maple Leafs will sign forward Kenny Agostino to a two-year, one-way deal with an AAV close to the league minimum of $700 thousand TSN Hockey Insider Bob McKenzie has confirmed.

The 27-year-old split last season with the New Jersey Devils and the Montreal Canadiens and in 63 games between the two teams, he scored six goals and added 18 assists.

Agostino was selected in the fifth round, 140th overall in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft by the Pittsburgh Penguins.

He made his NHL debut with Calgary Flames in the 2013-14 season and has also appeared with the St. Louis Blues and Boston Bruins over the course of his five year NHL career.

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Posted by Cidinha at 7:13 PM 0 comments

{allcanada} Stamps' Mitchell to have MRI Tuesday

 
Calgary Stampeders quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell will have an MRI Tuesday and said his injury wasn't to his shoulder but rather his pectoral injury.

Mitchell suffered an injury and was replaced by Nick Arbuckle in the fourth quarter of the team's win over the BC Lions Saturday. Mitchell appeared to be in serious discomfort late in the fourth quarter and could not throw the ball without pain.

TSN's Jermain Franklin reported Mitchell was not tended to on the sideline but used his left arm to congratulate teammates after the win.

The injury was originally believed to be to Mitchell's throwing shoulder.

Mitchell was 23 for 34 for 252 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception when he left the game.

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Posted by Cidinha at 5:45 PM 0 comments

{allcanada} Sens hire Payne as assistant coach

 

The Ottawa Senators have announced the hiring of former NHL head coach Davis Payne as an assistant coach.

He joins D.J. Smith's coaching staff, signing a three-year contract with the Senators. Payne spent parts of three seasons as head coach of the St. Louis Blues between 2009-12.

Fellow assistant and former New York Islanders head coach Jack Capuano rounds out the trio behind the bench.

Payne, 48, most recently spent the last two season as associate coach with the Buffalo Sabres. Before that, he spent five years with the Los Angeles Kings where he helped the team win the Stanley Cup in 2014.

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Posted by Cidinha at 5:43 PM 0 comments

{allcanada} Veteran goaltender Mike Smith will join Edmonton Oilers -

 

Veteran goaltender Mike Smith has chosen to play with the Edmonton Oilers, according to TSN Senior Hockey Reporter Frank Seravalli.  The expectation is that his salary will be in the neighbourhood of $2 million with the potential to earn $2 million more in performance bonuses on a one-year deal.  An announcement is expected on Monday.

Veteran goalie Mike Smith has chosen the #Oilers. He's more or less trading places with Cam Talbot, who as we hinted on Monday, is heading to the #Flames.

More on what that means for Lehner, Mrazek, and the rest of the goalie market on @SportsCentre at 6pm ET.

— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) June 30, 2019

Expectation is Mike Smith will be in neighbourhood of $2 million base salary with potential to earn up to $2 million more in performance bonuses on a one-year deal with #Oilers, to be announced tomorrow.

— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) June 30, 2019

The 37-year-old recorded a .898 save percentage and a 2.72 GAA with 23 wins in 40 starts with the Calgary Flames this season. In the Stanley Cup playoffs, Smith recorded a .917 save percentage and a 3.20 GAA with one win in five starts.

Over the course of his 13-year career, Smith has played for the Dallas Stars, Tampa Bay Lightning, and the Arizona Coyotes.

The Kingston, Ontario native is coming off a six-year, $34 million contract.

Smith has 243 wins, a .912 save percentage, and a 2.70 GAA in 571 career NHL games.

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Posted by Cidinha at 5:40 PM 0 comments

{allcanada} Canadiens free up more cap space: trade Deslauriers to Ducks

 

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) -- The Anaheim Ducks have acquired checking-line forward Nicolas Deslauriers in a trade with the Montreal Canadiens.

Montreal got a 2020 fourth-round draft pick and freed up $950,000 under the salary cap in completing their second trade Sunday. The Canadiens earlier traded center Andrew Shaw to Chicago .

The trades freed up $4.85 million in cap space for Montreal a day before the NHL's free-agency signing period opens.

Deslauriers is a hard-hitting left wing, who combined for 12 goals and 19 points in 106 games over two seasons with Montreal. Overall, the 28-year-old has 24 goals and 49 points in 317 career games. He spent his first four NHL seasons with the Buffalo Sabres.

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Posted by Cidinha at 5:26 PM 0 comments

{allcanada} Blackhawks reacquire Shaw in trade with Canadiens

 

CHICAGO (AP) -- The Chicago Blackhawks are hoping a familiar face can help them get back to the playoffs.

The Blackhawks reacquired Andrew Shaw in a trade with Montreal on Sunday, bringing back the pesky forward just three years after they shipped him to the Canadiens.

The 27-year-old Shaw had 19 goals and a career-high 28 assists in 63 games last season. He is signed through the 2021-22 season with an average annual value of $3.9 million.

Chicago has been active this offseason after missing the playoffs for the second straight year. It also acquired defensemen Olli Maatta and Calvin de Haan in a pair of trades.

The Blackhawks sent second- and seventh-round picks in next year's draft and a third-rounder in 2021 to the Canadiens for Shaw and a seventh-rounder in 2021.

Shaw was selected by Chicago in the fifth round in 2011 and spent his first five seasons with the Blackhawks, helping them win the Stanley Cup in 2013 and 2015. He was traded to the Canadiens in June 2016.

Shaw had 16 goals and 19 assists in 67 postseason games during his previous stint with Chicago, including one of the most memorable plays in franchise history. He was credited with a goal in the third overtime of Game 1 of the 2013 Stanley Cup Finals against Boston when the puck went off his right shin pad and into the net.

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Posted by Cidinha at 5:25 PM 0 comments

{allcanada} Five Canadian storylines for Wimbledon

 

All-Canadian clash

You wouldn't know it from how good Felix Auger-Aliassime's grass season has been that he had never played a professional match before on the surface. The 18-year old made the final in Stuttgart and the semifinals at Queen's Club, pushing his ATP ranking to a career high No. 21 in the world. His first round opponent at Wimbledon? None other than Vasek Pospisil, who is making his return to tennis after back surgery held him out for eight months. Auger-Aliassime, now comfortably the Canadian No. 2, is in the spot that had been held by Pospisil for the better part of this decade behind Milos Raonic. These two met last year at Indian Wells, with the youngster coming out on top in his very first win on the ATP tour. Auger-Aliassime is seeded No. 19 in the tournament, while Pospisil received entry into the main draw via his protected ranking. The winner of this match could face Grigor Dimitrov in the second round, whom Auger-Aliassime just beat two weeks ago at Queen's Club. They landed in Novak Djokovic's section who comes in as the favourite to win the title – while Auger-Aliassime is the fifth favourite on many sports books to win at 29/1, despite never winning a Grand Slam match.

Perfect path for Milos

Historically his best surface, Raonic had a respectable showing in two grass-court tournaments leading up to Wimbledon. The top-ranked Canadian won three matches in Stuttgart before withdrawing with a back injury, then won two matches at Queen's Club but lost in the quarter-finals to eventual champion Feliciano Lopez. This is all coming after he missed three months and Roland Garros due to the same back issue that kept him out of a Canadian clash at the semifinals in Stuttgart against Auger-Aliassime. It's the same story as it has always been; Raonic's results are mainly based on his body. If he stays healthy, there is huge potential for a deep run at Wimbledon. His draw is very favourable, starting with No. 91 Prajnesh Gunneswaran on Monday and potentially Robin Haase in the second round. But it's the certain seeded players that landed in his section that really makes this interesting. No. 22 Stan Wawrinka is projected to be his third round opponent and he hasn't reached that stage since 2015. Kevin Anderson would be the next projected opponent and he's only played four tournaments all year because of injury. Alexander Zverev is also in this quarter, and he's notoriously struggled in Grand Slams, notably when Raonic won their fourth round encounter at the Australian Open this year in straight sets. The draw has laid out a great path for the 28-year old and Canadian tennis fans can only hope he stays healthy.

Struggling Shapovalov gains late momentum

Good draws have been far from what Denis Shapovalov has received in 2019. The now 20-year old had to play his 2019 nemesis Jan-Lennard Struff in Stuttgart to kick off the grass season (he had previously lost twice to him this year already), and Juan Martin Del Potro at Queen's Club in his opening round matches, both losses. Add those to a clay season full of difficult draws and it just hasn't been the step forward Shapovalov was hoping for this year. The No. 29 seed boasts just a 15-15 record in 2019 and will have a considerable amount of points to defend after Wimbledon. Shapovalov drew No. 74 Ricardas Berankis in the first round and could face Jo-Wilfried Tsonga after that, a player he's beaten in the second round of a Grand Slam before. Rafael Nadal is the top-seeded player in Shapovalov's section, and a third round matchup between the two is a high possibility. There is some positive news coming into the tournament; the 2016 Wimbledon junior champion defeated Novak Djokovic at the Boodles exhibition last week in straight sets which should give him a boost of confidence.

Bouchard needing a boost

Absent from the tour for the majority of the spring and summer, Eugenie Bouchard has only played two matches since mid-March. An abdominal injury kept her out of every warm-up event leading into the French Open, while she only played one grass court match, a first round qualifier in Eastbourne, which she lost 6-2, 6-0 to a player ranked twenty spots below her. Nevertheless, the 2014 finalist is into the main draw at Wimbledon and will play No. 59 Tamara Zidanšek in the first round. Bouchard is in a section with winnable matches, but her lack of match play could deter the hope of making a run. She has the majority of her points to defend from now through the U.S. Open, so match wins are much more important to keep her ranking inside the top-100.

Lucky loser earns Schnur a spot

A Canadian newcomer to the big stage, Brayden Schnur advanced to his first career Grand Slam after winning the Lucky Loser draw. The Pickering, Ont. native lost in the final round of qualifying but drew the first number for players who were ranked the highest that were eliminated. He had to play the waiting game in hopes someone would withdraw and sure enough Borna Coric pulled out on Saturday, giving Schnur a spot in the main draw. The 23-year old is having a career year on the ATP tour, highlighted by making his first ATP final at the New York Open in February, doing so as a qualifier. Mixed results have followed since, and he took a month off to have minor surgery in correcting a deviated septum. His first round opponent Marcos Baghdatis, who made the Australian Open final all the way back in 2006, is retiring after the tournament so there will be some extra attention on this match. Schnur's main draw appearance pushes the number to five Canadian men at this Grand Slam, tying the record for most all-time.

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Posted by Cidinha at 12:19 PM 0 comments

{allcanada} Oilers among teams with interest in free agent Corey Perry

 

The Edmonton Oilers are among the teams interested in free agent forward Corey Perry, according to Sportsnet's John Shannon.

There are at least four teams "going heavy after" Perry, reports Shannon, ahead of the opening of free agency on Monday at 12 p.m. ET/9 a.m. PT.

The Anaheim Ducks bought out the final two years of Perry's eight-year, $69-million extension on June 19. At the time, Ducks GM Bob Murray called the move "one of the most difficult decisions I've had to make in my 44 years in the NHL."

The 34-year-old played in just 31 games for the Ducks this past season after suffering a knee injury in the pre-season. Perry finished the campaign with six goals and 10 points.

In 14 seasons with the Ducks, the Peterborough, Ont., native racked up 776 points in 988 games, capturing the Hart and the Maurice Richard Trophy after his 50-goal, 98-point season in 2010-11. He also helped the franchise to its first Stanley Cup in his sophomore season.

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Posted by Cidinha at 12:12 PM 0 comments

{allcanada} Oilers place Sekera on waivers for purpose of buyout

 

The Edmonton Oilers have placed defenceman Andrej Sekera on unconditional waivers for the purpose of a buyout, the team announced Sunday.

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Saturday, June 29, 2019

{allcanada} Leerdam's late winner gives Sounders win over Whitecaps

 

SEATTLE — Kelvin Leerdam scored in the sixth minute of second-half stoppage time to give the Seattle Sounders a 1-0 victory over the rival Vancouver Whitecaps on Saturday night in their second Cascadia Cup showdown of the season.

Seattle had a potential winning goal from promising 16-year-old midfielder Danny Leyva overturned on video review earlier in the second half. But there was no overturning Leerdam's goal after Seattle had an extended period of possession deep in Vancouver's end in the closing minutes. Leerdam's right-footed shot from near the penalty spot beat Vancouver goalkeeper Zac MacMath.

It was the fifth goal of the season for Leerdam and gave Seattle its first win since beating Orlando City on May 15.

Vancouver saw its six-game unbeaten streak come to an end, although five of the six had finished in draws.

While Leerdam's goal was the winner, Leyva was the star of the night as he became the third-youngest player to start an MLS match and nearly netted his first goal only to have a review by referee Alan Kelly nullify the strike.

Levya appeared to give Seattle the lead in the 60th minute with a chipped shot from well outside the penalty area into an open Vancouver goal. The net was unguarded after MacMath tried to beat Seattle's Justin Dhillon to a loose ball and inadvertently had his foot stepped on. With MacMath down and the goal open, Leyva chipped the rest of the Vancouver defence to momentarily give Seattle the lead.

Vancouver argued Dhillon fouled MacMath and Kelly agreed following the video review.

Seattle fielded a makeshift lineup with a number of starters still off on international duty, including Jordan Morris, Cristian Roldan, Nicolas Lodeiro and Raul Ruidiaz. Playmaking midfielder Victor Rodriguez tweaked his hamstring in practice on Friday and was held out for precautionary reasons. The absences forced Seattle to sign and start Dhillon from its developmental USL squad, and give Leyva his first start. Seattle also brought on 17-year-old Alfonso Ocampo-Chavez as a sub in the second half.

Vancouver was without five players due to international duty. The Whitecaps' best chance at a winner came in the 57th minute when Ali Adnan's shot from a tight angle surprised goalkeeper Stefan Frei and forced an awkward save.

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Posted by Cidinha at 10:19 PM 0 comments

{allcanada} Meram nets pair, Atlanta United tops Impact

 

ATLANTA — Justin Meram scored his first two goals for Atlanta United, netting the winner in the 83rd minute, in a 2-1 victory over the Montreal Impact on Saturday night.

Meram, who was acquired in a trade with Columbus in early May, was a step off the line when Brek Shea put a touch along the end line on a loose ball that ended on Meram's foot. The play started as a corner kick and a header sent the ball toward the goal, where a sliding Shea got his foot on it.

Meram got his 40th career goal in the 35th minute when he bent a rocket from outside the box into the far top corner. Atlanta (9-6-2) is 9-3-0 when scoring first.

Montreal (8-8-3), which missed a chance to move into first place in the Eastern Conference, tied it early in the second half. Zakaria Diallo was standing in the box when Harry Novillo sent a low, hard shot toward the corner. Diallo redirected the ball with his knee for his second goal. The Impact only had five shots and that was the only one on target.

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Posted by Cidinha at 10:18 PM 0 comments

{allcanada} Rooney's PK lifts DC United to draw with TFC

 

WASHINGTON — Wayne Rooney scored on a penalty kick in the 92nd minute to give D.C. United a 1-1 draw with Toronto FC on Saturday night.

Rooney went low and straight up the middle to beat goalkeeper Quentin Westberg for his 10th goal of the season. D.C. United (8-4-7) got the penalty kick when Frédéric Brillant was brought down by Toronto FC's Ayo Akinola in the area.

Nick DeLeon opened the scoring for Toronto FC (6-7-5) in the 19th minute, tapping home Richie Laryea's cross from the top of the 6-yard box.

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Posted by Cidinha at 10:18 PM 0 comments

{allcanada} Canada eliminated from Gold Cup after quarter-final loss to Haiti

 

HOUSTON — Haiti reached the semifinals of the CONCACAF Gold Cup for the first time, overcoming a two-goal deficit to beat Canada 3-2 on Saturday night.

The 101st-ranked Haitians will play Mexico or Costa Rica on Tuesday at Glendale, Arizona.

Jonathan David scored on a free kick in the 18th minute, his tournament-high sixth goal, and No. 78 Canada doubled its lead when Lucas Cavallini beat goalkeeper Jhony Placide in the 28th minute for his fifth goal.

Duckens Nazon cut Haiti's deficit in the 50th and Herve Bazile tied the score in the 70th with a penalty kick after he was taken down by Marcus Godinho.

Wilde-donald Guerrier scored the go-ahead goal in the 76th.

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Posted by Cidinha at 10:17 PM 0 comments

{allcanada} Canada's Schnur makes Wimbledon as lucky loser after Coric withdraws

 

WIMBLEDON, United Kingdom — Brayden Schnur of Pickering, Ont., made the men's singles draw at Wimbledon on Saturday as the lucky loser.

Schnur will play Marcos Baghdatis of Cyprus on Tuesday in the grass-court Grand Slam after Borna Coric withdrew with an injury.

His inclusion in the tournament means that five Canadians will play in the men's singles tournament, joining Milos Raonic, Denis Shapovalov, Vasek Pospisil and Felix Auger-Aliassime.

That ties the record for most Canadians in a draw at a Grand Slam tournament, matching the 2018 U.S. Open and the 1990 Australian Open.

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Posted by Cidinha at 10:17 PM 0 comments

{allcanada} Tippett looks for Oilers to step up in free agency

 

Dave Tippett remains optimistic the Edmonton Oilers can beat expectations next season, but their new coach is certain one of the keys to progress will be success in the free agent signing period that begins July 1.

The 57-year-old was hired as Edmonton coach May 28, two weeks after Ken Holland was hired as Oilers general manager.

Tippett said a primary focus for the revamped Oilers hockey operations department is help for No. 1 goalie Mikko Koskinen.

"You're going to need another guy who can play," Tippett said Friday. "Koskinen, I watched him at different times last season. He looked really strong for stretches, and down the stretch in the last month or so, he looked tired to me. He had played a lot of games."

Koskinen returned to the NHL this season after playing the previous seven in Europe. The 30-year-old went 25-21-6 for Edmonton with a 2.93 goals-against average, a .906 save percentage and four shutouts in 55 games (51 starts).

"I'm looking forward to working with him," Tippett said. "There's some real good parts to his game. That said, we need to another guy to take some of the load off him."

In order to improve on their 35-38-9 record, which left them 11 points behind the Colorado Avalanche for the second wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Western Conference, Tippett said the Oilers will also need to find some help for centers Connor McDavid, who had an NHL career-high 116 points (41 goals, 75 points) in 78 games, and Leon Draisaitl, who had an NHL career-best 105 points (50 goals, 55 assists) in 82 games.

"[Holland] has been working away here all week with the (free agent) interview period, and he knows we've got some holes to fill," Tippett said. "There's some depth at forward that really has to be addressed. He's going at it hard with the people here. We've had some good discussions about the lineup and where it's going and who we think could fit in, so we'll see where that goes in the next few days."

Tippett discussed a wide range of topics in an interview with NHL.com:

How optimistic are you that the Oilers can exceed expectations next season and how fast can change and improvement take place?

"It was a tough year last year so everybody gets really caught up in everything that's gone bad. So when you're a new voice coming in, you say there's a lot of good parts here, too. Any time you have a core of players like McDavid, Draisaitl, [center Ryan] Nugent-Hopkins, [defensemen Darnell] Nurse, [Oscar] Klefbom, [Adam] Larsson, there are some good players here and it's not as if they missed the playoffs by 25 points. They missed by 11 in a year that they fired a coach (Todd McLellan on Nov. 20), fired a [general] manager (Peter Chiarelli on Jan. 23). There was a lot of turmoil going on. It's not as far off as people think it is and hopefully coming in with maybe making a couple of subtle moves here and there and getting stabilized a little bit, we can be a better team. If you missed by 11 points last year, you hope to make that up and get yourself in somehow."

How much discussion have you had with McDavid since being hired?

"I have talked to him a couple of times. I've had some exposure to him as an assistant [with Team North America] at the World Cup [of Hockey 2016]. He's a dominant player. He's one of those players who has the ability to dictate the outcome of games. Anytime you have a player like that on your roster, as a coach it's a nice tool to have in your toolbox. He's a very humble, good person and obviously an unbelievable player. I am looking forward to working with him on a day-to-day basis."

Are you thinking about playing McDavid and Draisaitl on the same line, as they have much of the past three seasons?

"I know that they've played very well together, so that's the early thought coming in. But really, until we get what our final roster looks like, as a coach you try to put the pieces together you think you can win with. If those guys are together, that's one way. Depending who else might join our roster, there might be other ways to do it. So I've got nothing set in stone yet."

What are your thoughts on helping forward Milan Lucic rebound next season after he scored six goals this season?

"We'll have to see how the rest of our lineup gets put together. He's a guy who can be a big, strong winger and go up and down the wing and play hard and we'll try to get him in that mode but to see who he plays with, those are things that also help players. We'll see where all that turns out."

You've been referred to as a defensive coach. Would it be more accurate to say you coach under a defensive structure?

"Call it system or structure, every team has certain ways they play in a game. It's how well the players do it together and how consistently they do it together. It's about playing as a team. Those are things that I think are prerequisites to being a winning team. My whole thing is, how do you win? You've got a group of players and the coach's job is to maximize each of those players and play a style that allows your team to be the most successful. … We have McDavid and Draisaitl and they have to be able to play to their strengths. We'll have bottom-six forwards who have to be able to play to their strengths also, and some of those strengths are penalty killing and faceoffs. There are a lot of things people can do to help you win, even though they're not top offensive players. I'm more about maximizing people I have."

This is your first time coaching a team in a Canada market. How would you describe the passion of hockey fans in Edmonton?

"We had a little 3-on-3 game here at the development camp, but the stands were full in the practice rink, so that's on a Thursday evening in the middle of summer. That's a good sign of things to come."

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{allcanada} Stampeders come from behind to defeat Lions

 

CALGARY — Eric Rogers nearly wasn't a Stampeder this season.

The 28-year-old receiver considered retirement after helping Calgary win the Grey Cup last November.

He'd undergone a second major knee surgery in as many years in early August.

Even though he returned for playoffs, Rogers wasn't sure his knee would allow him to continue playing football.

The six-foot-four, 215-pound slotback decided to re-sign with the Stampeders.

His team benefited greatly from that decision Saturday.

Rogers scored three touchdowns, including the game winner with 31 seconds left, in a 36-32 victory over the visiting B.C. Lions.

"Last year was just so taxing and gruelling," Roger said. "I was pretty much done until free agency came around and I decided to come back. I'm glad I did.

"It's a terrible thing for you to have to end your career early for an injury and I know if happens often.

"Just for me to be able to go out on my own terms and have my favourite No. 4, it's definitely a blessing to be able to play the game of football."

Trailing 22-9 at halftime and down nine points after three quarters, Calgary (1-1) outscored B.C. 23-10 in the final quarter.

The Lions dropped to 0-3.

Calgary quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell's 252 passing yards pushed him to the career 25,000 mark, but he did not finish the game.

Mitchell appeared to hurt his throwing shoulder with less than three minutes to play, bringing backup Nick Arbuckle onto the field.

Arbuckle's one-yard rushing touchdown and a two-point convert throw to Rogers pulled Calgary within a field goal with one minute 20 seconds left.

Then Calgary's Michael Klukas got his hand on the ball during an onside kick for Rogers to recover in B.C. territory.

Rogers' four-yard touchdown catch completed the comeback.

"I think he's back to the Eric Rogers we saw a few years ago," head coach Dave Dickenson said. "He's making sharp cuts.

"He's going down the field. He has the hands, the high point. You try to cover a guy with that sort of wing span. Great game and clutch once again."

Dickenson did not have an update on Mitchell's condition. Mitchell was 23 for 34 in passing including two touchdowns before leaving the game.

John White scored a pair of touchdowns for the Lions, who had an 11-point cushion with five minutes to play on quarterback Mike Reilly's rushing touchdown.

Former Stampeder Lemar Durant also had a touchdown catch for B.C. in front of an announced 25,130 at McMahon Stadium.

Reilly completed 36-of-42 pass attempts for 354 yards and a pair of touchdown passes in the loss.

"The game is never over. It literally is never over in this league, especially if it's within two scores," Reilly said.

"They made the plays when they needed to and we let too many opportunities slip by throughout the course of the game."

B.C. dominated time of possession with 37 minutes to just under 23 for Calgary.

"It wasn't pretty. Did we outplay them? Probably not," Dickenson said. "Time of possession was obscene in their favour, but football is football.

"I believe that's why we love the CFL because the game's not over. That clock goes slow in those last three minutes and we were able to take advantage of it."

The Stampeders got help from a defence that out-tackled the Lions 57-41 and prevented a last-second touchdown in the first half with a goal-line stand.

Arbuckle completed all nine passes he attempted for 93 yards in relief of Mitchell.

"It's the moment I've been preparing for since I (joined) the team all the way back in 2016 when I joined on the practice squad," Arbuckle said.

"I was just waiting for my opportunity and knew the longer it took to get there, the better I was going to be when I got there."

The Lions are in Toronto to face the Argonauts and the Stampeders head to Regina to take on the Saskatchewan Roughriders on Saturday.

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{allcanada} Photo: Pamela Anderson makes a statement with a "truth" slogan T-shirt as she arrives at LAX Airport amid claims that her ex-boyfriend Adil Rami cheated on

 
Pamela Anderson makes a statement with a "truth" slogan T-shirt as she arrives at LAX Airport amid claims that her ex-boyfriend Adil Rami cheated on

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